Book(s) by Regina Sherman

I've gone back and forth on linking my real identity with my alter-ego's. The reasons aren't complicated. I'm afraid that my self-published titles could someday hinder my chances of selling to a traditional publisher. I'm also afraid that the types of books I've published under the pseudonym would be problematic when I get around to shopping out my fantasy novels; I fear being pigeon-holed.

Okay, and if I'm being really honest, in the beginning I might have been afraid that the self-published book would get terrible reviews (paranoid much...yes), and those terrible reviews would further damage my future publishing chances. This fear has been lessened. While not everyone has raved about the book, the response has been favorable. Small in scale, but favorable. As I write this post, Amazon shows 4.5 out of 5 stars; granted only five reviews account for this. Yet, through Amazon's KDP program I've sold quite a few copies and gave away over 3000 freebies last January. I'm still selling in small single digit numbers almost every month.

The book also has a few reviews on Goodreads. Over there it's getting 3.83 out of 5 stars. Not quite as glowing as Amazon, but there are more people responding. Not a lot of people, mind you. Just a few. Right now, I see a whopping twelve ratings and three reviews.

I'm not surprised at the low numbers. I can admit I'm a terrible self-promoter. T-E-R-R-I-B-L-E!!

Not that I didn't try. I created a blog, a new e-mail address, and a Facebook account for the pseudonym. The problem is that I'm terrible about updating the social media sites and I'm even worse at checking the e-mail account. (I should probably do that today, now that I think about it.)

For this reason, I've decided it's really pointless for me to keep the two separate. I can hardly keep my blog updated, let alone try to come up with content for another one. Also, by separating the two and being focused on the alter-ego's next book, it doesn't give me a lot of opportunities to share my writing with this audience. And this is where I have an audience, small as it may be.

For all these reasons, let me officially introduce you to Regina Sherman and her first self-published book:

Writing...It's What I'd Like to Update You On

As quite a few of my previous posts have been about homework, it will probably come as no surprise that I haven't been working on Book #2. I want to, though! I'm really happy with the opening chapter, not because it's perfect and I won't end up changing a single thing - that never happens - but because it really does set up my heroine for her defining moment. As I usually tend to start my stories too early, I may need to scrap this chapter in the future, but for now it serves a purpose: it has given me direction. I know what needs to happen next!

I love this feeling. I'm excited to get back to the writing.

First, though, I need to get through the last couple weeks of the semester.

The only other distraction I'm worried about is the holiday season itself. It's crazy how busy we are this time of year. This weekend we're going to try to pick out our Christmas tree on Saturday morning before we need to leave for my side of the family's Christmas party; this is the one with grandma, her kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids. The party is being held "up north", which is about a two hour drive from where we live. Because the party starts at 1 PM, we need to leave our house by 11 AM. This gives us exactly one hour to get our tree, bring it home, and get into the tree stand. Yikes!

Maybe if I was more dedicated, I would write in the car. A fully charged laptop battery can last for about an hour when I'm not doing anything more strenuous than word processing. Hmm. Could I give up reading in the car for writing in the car? I'm not sure. I suppose I could try it..

Willing to Play Along

I'm not usually known for my "sticking-to-it-ness" . In fact, I'm usually out of the game by day three or four because I forget I'm participating. Yes, I'm that scatterbrained! Let's just call it what it is - ADD - and move along.

In an effort to keep myself on task with this fun little photo challenge, I'm going to try something new. A daily calendar reminder. Here's Day 1.

Don't know if anyone else wants to play along, but if you do, let me know. I want to follow your pictures!

Just a Few More Weeks..

I took next week off work, not so I could go on some fancy vacation, but to help me find the time to work on the last few major projects I need to complete before the end of December. These projects don't fall in the home improvement or Christmas gifts categories. Oh, no. These projects are for school. As the end of the semester winds ever closer, here's what I have left:

Linguistics Class:

Finish up the IPA translation of a recorded speech sample (this is 98% done, but I'm not confident in my translation abilities, which means I'll probably second guess myself a few dozen times before turning it in).

Write a 2000-word report of the interview process, which should include some scholarly references to help support my interpretation of the findings.

Compile the appendix and supporting documentation.

College Comp Class:

Some reading (that's due by this Thursday)

Refine my Teaching Statement.

Rework my Syllabus.

Okay, seeing the items listed out like this makes me think it is possible to finish without going insane!

Christmas Cards - Done!

Today we had our first real snow of the winter season. This, of course, meant that I forced my family to change out of their comfy clothes (sweatshirts and sweatpants) and into something a little more appropriate for a Christmas Card photo op.

Boy, do they love me!

I think the effort was well worth it, though. Look how great our picture turned out!

We Take A Break From Our Regular Programming

Don't tell my instructors, but I spent most of my weekend working on a photo book.

I figured homework could wait until Monday Night Football. While the guys are doing their thing (a.k.a. falling asleep in their chairs), I can work the homework I should have been focusing on Saturday and Sunday.